MIRACLE MAX: Verstappen seizes first Championship after late Safety Car ruins Hamilton’s bid for an unprecedented eighth title; Shell-shocked Mercedes still win record eighth Constructors’ Title in controversial season finale
In one of the most controversial Grand Prix in Formula 1 history, let alone for a Championship-deciding season finale, Red Bull’s superb Max Verstappen prevailed over Mercedes ace and seven-time World Champ Lewis Hamilton in Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to take his first-ever F1 crown. Under the bright lights of Yas Marina Circuit and the glare of lifelong expectations, the Dutch wunderkind, running P2 and around 13-seconds behind Hamilton, took advantage of a late Safety Car caused by Williams’ Nicolas Latifi crashing out on Lap 53 to nip into the pits for a fresh set of Soft Pirelli tires. Meanwhile, Mercedes did not feel able to pit Hamilton even though he was on relatively ancient Hard tires already some 30-laps-old with five to go in this 58-lap contest because they didn’t want to cede the ever-valuable track position. That left Hamilton highly vulnerable should the wrecked Williams be able to be cleared before the laps of the race ran out. To the marshals’ and the race director’s credit, they decided to everything possible to clear the stranded Williams and associated debris and restart the race, thereby letting the two title contenders finish fighting it out under green.
That extraordinary final lap of the 2021 title race in full 😮#AbuDhabiGP 🇦🇪 #F1 pic.twitter.com/kknTMDfpAF
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 12, 2021
To get to that point, however, Race Director Michael Masi had to insert himself into the outcome by first not allowing the five lapped cars between Hamilton and P2 Verstappen to pass the Safety Car and get back to the tail end of the field. This enabled the marshals to safely clear Latifi’s car. With a little over a lap now remaining, Masi then changed his edict and had the lapped cars overtake to clear the top two, allowing Verstappen to pull right alongside Hamilton for the restart towards the end of Lap 57, As the Safety Car ducked back into the pits, Hamilton tried to get the drop on Verstappen by controlling and scooting away at the restart. But the Dutchman didn’t let him gain much of advantage and his faster, fresher rubber soon proved too much for the Mercedes man to overcome. By Turn 5 of the final lap, Hamilton was easy meat and, despite fighting like the champion he is and always will be, Hamilton could no longer hold off the inevitable. Verstappen slipped by to take a lead that seemed impossible just five laps prior in front a enthralled fans of all rooting interests. Hamilton tried one more desperation lunge but Verstappen quickly distanced him, pulling away and coming to the checkers some 2.256-seconds ahead of his season-long nemesis. They say to be the best you’ve got to beat the best and that’s exactly what young Max did today to become the fourth youngest F1 Champion at the age of 24-years and 73 days (active drivers Hamilton is the second-youngest champ, Sebastian Vettel first).
How this hard fought title was delivered to the Dutchman through a crazy sequence of late-race luck and the pivotal decisions of the Race Director will be talked about and debated for as long as Formula 1 exists. But it’s only fitting that the most entertaining season in recent memory should climax with one of the most unforgettable races in the sport’s history, the culmination of an epic battle between two of the greatest pilots to ever strap into the cockpit of an F1 machine. While only one came away with the 2021 F1 crown, both were truly deserving of it. But the stars aligned for Verstappen and against Hamilton under the sparkling lights of Yas Marina in Abu Dhabi and it ended up being Max’s time to shine.
Top 10 finishers of the Abu Dhabi GP:
POS | DRIVER | TIME/RETIRED | PTS |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 1:30:17.345 | 26 | |
2 | +2.256s | 18 | |
3 | +5.173s | 15 | |
4 | +5.692s | 12 | |
5 | +6.531s | 10 | |
6 | +7.463s | 8 | |
7 | +59.200s | 6 | |
8 | +61.708s | 4 | |
9 | +64.026s | 2 | |
10 | +66.057s | 1 |
Complete race results available via Formula1.com.
Final 2021 Drivers’ Championship stamdinge are here.
Final 2021 Constructors’ Championship standings are here.
That does it for an epic 2021 F1 season. Have a great & safe winter and look forward to seeing you in 2022 when a whole new set of technical regulations should make things even more competitive & intriguing!